


The Untold Story

by PanAndProud123



Series: The Untold Story [1]
Category: Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Completed, but it's only that one scene, but yeah character death, not really violence, okay baiiiii, the next book is probs gonna be more gorey
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-27
Updated: 2020-10-26
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:47:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 18
Words: 17,654
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27218158
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PanAndProud123/pseuds/PanAndProud123
Summary: Jackie didn't grow up with Santa Clause, the Tooth Fairy, the Easter Bunny, and Sandman. Instead, her father fed her the story of a boy who saved his sister from drowning when they went ice skating. However, he didn't save himself. But the Man in the Moon took pity on him and turned him into a winter spirit.Jack Frost. Her great-great-grandma's brother.Oh, but there's more. When she explores a hole in the skeleton of what once was a small lake, she gains so much more than an adventure. Along the way, she gets something she always wanted: a friend.You still with me? Good. Meanwhile, the Guardians receive a message from Manny-find a girl. He provided something of an address and a visual of what she looked like. And... Well, she looks just like Jack. Who is this girl? And... Why does Manny want her?You get all (well, not exactly all) the answers as Jackie Frost tells us her tale, where she finds (or at least, tried to find) something she always wanted an answer to... Where she belongs.
Series: The Untold Story [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1987129
Comments: 4
Kudos: 12





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [SofieButterfly (on Wattpad)](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=SofieButterfly+%28on+Wattpad%29).



> KJLJLKslsfgdljkfajlk I have no idea what the sequel will be like and I'm writing like two other fics pls be patient with me-

"I'm leaving!" Jackie yelled into the building she called home. Sighing, she left. After her father had died, her mother had taken to going out and staying with "friends" for days at a time. This week, it was New York. Jackie learned not to ask where her mother went, knowing she wouldn't get any answer at all. However, her mother left pamphlets on whatever state she was visiting next in the house, which gave Jackie a clue.

But one of the things Jackie liked the most about herself was that she would adapt to a situation well. When her mother had been doing this "hobby" of hers for a month or so, Jackie instantly made a mental list of potential weapons she could use ran through her head at least five times an hour. What, it's a long list! Burglar alarms were put up and installed, which Jackie checked every month without fail.

That day, it was snowing lightly, and Jackie's feet guided her to her favorite spot- what evidently used to be a small lake, now dried up. Once, her father pointed it out to her, and then the two started going there nearly every week. Usually, they told bad jokes until it was time for dinner.

But today, there was something there that Jackie had never seen there. For whatever reason, a hold about a foot and a half wide with a child's bed frame sitting on top of it was placed smack dab in the middle of the lake's skeleton. The bed frame itself was definitely old and damaged, like it could be reduced into splinters with a single touch. Jackie moved towards it, curious. Most would have stopped and walked towards it slowly. Jackie walked towards it as quickly as she could. And even though it was the afternoon, the moon peeked out of the blue sky.

When she got there, she looked at the bed frame and put a hand on it. Then, she grabbed the back posts and pulled it off with brute strength. Surprisingly, it worked. Thanks to the cold of the winter, she was dressed in a thick black jacket and a denim blue hoodie, but stubbornly wore thin black leggings and black Converse High-Tops. Her black hair was messy, tangled, and short, only going up to her shoulders. Jackie bent forward slightly to look inside the hole, which was pitch black. Her blue eyes shone with curiosity.

A voice in Jackie's mind said, "Do it." For whatever reason, Jackie complied. She didn't protest. She didn't even pause to think about whose voice that was, because it definitely wasn't hers. Jackie headed back home as quickly as she could and got a length of rope and a battered backpack with a couple sandwiches, two water bottles, a few flashlights, and a very advanced first-aid kit. The rope was maybe 10 yards long, made for climbing, and could hold much weight. Jackie tied the rope to a strong and sturdy looking tree, then tested out her knot by pulling on it with all of her weight. It would do.

Then, Jackie picked up a small rock and threw it down the hole. It was 10 seconds before she heard it hit the floor, making a _thud_. The floor of the cave, so it seemed, was hard, probably rock. Cautiously, Jackie dropped the rope into the hole and slid/climbed down it.

Inside, it was dark. Jackie was in a tunnel, she knew that. And because the light at the end of the tunnel was rather large, Jackie assumed it was a quite small tunnel. There were a lot of stalagmites and stalactites, all black as coal. The teen walked to the end of the tunnel curiously.

"Whoa," Jackie said, stopping. There were hundreds of metal cages hanging from the ceiling, finely made. They all looked to have been made in the same mold. Jackie noticed the bridges and stairs leading to other levels of the cave, too. She took a staircase down to the bottom floor, and walked towards what looked like a large black globe missing the oceans. But there were hundreds, thousands, maybe even hundreds of thousands of small, golden lights it.

_Clomp. Clomp._ Hooves.

_What the fuck?_ Jackie thought. She wheeled around, finding herself face to face with a horse that had many sharp curves on its body, and strangely shaped horns coming out of the sides of its mouth. Its eyes looked like a pit of golden lava. And it looked even stranger as Jackie took in that it was made of black sand.

For some reason, she didn't panic. Instead, she just said, "Could this day- well, hour- get any weirder?" 

"You haven't even seen the most of it," a voice behind Jackie said. 


	2. Chapter 2

Jackie froze. Then, she pulled out her pocket knife. It was old, but it had served Jackie well. The handle bit was made of steel as well as the blade, and there was a flashlight above the part where the blade went. It was a nice little thing to have. The blade was sharp and shone menacingly. Studying the man quickly, Jackie noticed the man was tall, had grey skin, black hair that resembled spikes, and silver-gold eyes resembling an eclipse. His expression was curious and cold.

"Who the hell are you?" Jackie asked, putting on her most terrifying gaze. Her tone was cold yet calm, showing she was tough but not intimidated. She was tense, but not scared. Her father had taught her much about fighting- she could take this dude.

"Pitch Black. But perhaps you know me as the Boogeyman?" Pitch replied. Jackie noted his accent, deciding it was smooth British.

"So this day can get weirder." the teen replied, her knife still pointed at Pitch. But her tone was more friendly than before. "So, what is this place? And, uh, what's up with the cages? Oh, and the horse."

"Why should I tell you anything?" Pitch snapped back.

Jackie rolled her eyes. "Well, you don't have to, but it's a lot quicker and less annoying than me asking you about it for the next few hours."

Pitch sighed, defeated, and said, "This is my home. The cages were used to contain the Tooth Fairy's little helpers," the last four words said with a mocking tone. "And the 'horse' is a Nightmare, a creature of darkness."

Jackie's mind reeled. "Oh my God. Can this day- no, can my life get any weirder? Okay, what do you mean by 'the Tooth Fairy's little helpers?'"

"What, do you honestly believe she can collect all of those teeth by herself? She doesn't even go out in the field most of the time," Pitch replied, snorting.

The teen rolled her eyes. Then she turned to the Nightmare, putting her pocket knife away. Relaxing, Jackie reached out a hand, and it was clear she was reaching out to touch the horse. The Nightmare sniffed the teen's hand and nudged it. Jackie smiled, just a little, and gently stroked the sides of the mare's head. "Does she have a name?" Jackie asked, still stroking the Nightmare.

Pitch, shocked, replied, "What? Erm- no..." He thought, Children.

The teen thought. "How 'bout Nyx?" she asked, smiling at the horse gently. To Pitch's surprise, the Nightmare, apparently now named Nyx, neighed in an agreeing sort of way. "Nyx it is," Jackie replied.

Pitch was absolutely perplexed. The child didn't seem to be showing a hint of fear. It was like she was at home in his. Why?

"And you are?" Pitch asked coldly. Or at least, he tried. Some curiosity poked though his icy tone. 

"Jackie. Jackie Frost," the other replied, mocking Pitch's cool tone better than he did.

Instantly, Pitch started to panic a little. Frost? Suddenly, Pitch realized how her thin, pale body and stunningly blue eyes matched... His. But her fashion sense was different. At least she wore shoes. He would never forget about he had been overpowered by Jack Frost almost easily. Him and the others...

"You're his?" Pitch said almost instantly. He attempted to regain his posture, yet failed. When would that have happened? Who in their right mind would have done... That? With him?

"No. But I am his sister's great-great granddaughter," Jackie replied like it didn't matter. Pitch was even more confounded.

"He- he had a sister?" Pitch asked, rubbing his forehead, trying to soak in this information. Questions formed in his mind like rabbits during mating season.

"Yeah," the other replied, still stroking Nyx, who responded well. Too well.

Pitch paid attention to his thoughts now. Perhaps she had power, and he could use it to override the Guardians. Then he realized that wasn't likely, because she had threatened him with a pocket knife in the beginning. If she had powers, a pocket knife wouldn't have been her first choice of defense.

He was pulled from his thoughts and back to earth when Jackie asked him, "Hungry?" She held what looked like something rectangular wrapped in a thin sheet of metal in one hand, offering it to Pitch, her backpack in her other hand. That must have been where she got it. Pitch blinked. "Well, you want it or not?" Jackie asked after a minute. Her tone, Pitch was shocked to hear, was, yes, impatient, but there was a bit of fun mixed into it. Like Pitch was her friend.

Pitch took the thing. Jackie leaned against the wall, pulling a similar rectangle out of her backpack. Pitch unwrapped it and found something made out of bread inside. "It's a sandwich. Peanut butter and jelly. You allergic?" Jackie asked, already biting her... Sandwich.

The other just stared at the girl and took a bite of his own sandwich. Instantly, Pitch fell in love and the rest was gone in mere seconds. "Yeah, everyone likes dad's jam recipe," Jackie smirked, also done with her sandwich. Jackie held out her hand. Pitch looked at it questioningly. "The foil," Jackie said. Ah.

The teen collected their trash and shoved it into her backpack, closing and slinging it over her shoulder again. Pitch's mind buzzed with questions. This girl, who he just met, was treating him like an equal. A friend. Was this a trick? Did the Guardians find her and tell her to come and befriend him only to find out his secrets? As if they had the brains to conceive him. But still...

"Do you make every nightmare happen? Or are some of them caused by humans?" Jackie asked, still leaning against the wall, yet stroking Nyx.

"No, some of them are caused by humans and their past experiences," Pitch replied. Why was he trusting the girl this much? She could be a spy or...

And the questions kept coming. Soon, the girl knew much about the Guardians, Jack Frost (the topic she seemed to be the most curious about), other spirits and... Er... People like North and the Tooth Fairy. What surprised Pitch the most was the fact that Jackie didn't seem to be surprised by everything, she just kept asking questions.

The man was both surprised and disgusted by the fact that he... Almost enjoyed the teen's presence. Something about her made Pitch forget about the Guardians, about his rage, how nobody believed in him. Except... for her. And it was... it was almost nice to have someone to talk to. Suddenly, Pitch found himself ranting about the Guardians. And Jackie listened. Pitch liked how she didn't have a pitying look on her face, but understanding instead.

"It sucks, doesn't it? Tons of people just ignoring you while paying attention to a select group of four, five people," Jackie said softly yet bitterly after Pitch had finished ranting.

Shocked, the other replied, "What would you know about that?"

Jackie snorted. "You ever been to middle school? You either gotta be a 'popular girl' or real extroverted and nice to get noticed. Oh, and if you're a bully, yeah, you get attention, just bad attention."

They stood in silence. "Sometimes it's hard to remember that other people have problems when we're so..." she struggled to find the right world. "...engaged in our own, huh?" The impact of those words hit Pitch right in the heart. She wasn't wrong...

"It's late, shouldn't you go home?" Pitch asked hurriedly.

Jackie laughed softly. "Yeah, I've overstayed my welcome, haven't I?" Pitch flinched when he noted that her voice was teasing and sad at the same time. Why did he even care? This was just another stupid child.

A stupid child who willingly stayed with him and talked to him for four hours...

"No, I... I only meant that your parents would be looking for you," Pitch said. If the girl wanted an apology, she wouldn't get one. But he hoped the apology in his voice was enough.

However, he regretted the words as soon as they were out of his mouth. The teen's expression turned cold as the winter night itself, so cold that Pitch almost shivered. She bitterly replied, "My mother is in New York. Don't think she's gonna be looking for me anytime soon."

Pitch waited uncomfortably. Jackie didn't continue. Deciding to further prod the teen, Pitch said, "And your father?"

Jackie looked away. The look in her eyes, though, was so intense that even Pitch was getting a little scared. A kid who can scare the Boogeyman? With a look? Damn.

"Dead." Jackie's voice cracked as she said it with emotion. Pitch's eyes widened as the teen's eyes watered, threatening to overflow. However, she wiped them away quickly and looked back at Pitch, no longer crying.

Pitch felt terrible, for whatever reason. Jackie cleared her throat and said, "I should get going." Pitch nodded and Jackie left, heading towards the exit.

"Wait." Jackie turned. "Why did you tell me about your parents?" Pitch asked, knowing the question would haunt him if she didn't answer.

Jackie shrugged and said, "You answered my questions. I figured it wouldn't hurt to answer one of answer yours." Then she left through the short tunnel. Pitch sighed and disappeared into the shadows. Little did he know he just made his first ever friend.


	3. Chapter 3

It had been a week. Jackie had been pushing herself to stay away from the man in the cavern-underground-cave-thing for a while. Today, however, she decided it was time to go back. The last visit hadn't exactly been much fun, but ever since Jackie had spent some time in the presence of another person who didn't really seem to hate her, she missed it. Plus, she had a few more questions about the world of spirits.

And so, Jackie walked towards the lake with her backpack containing two sandwiches (because Pitch seemed to like them, and she had a lot of questions), an apple (for Nyx), two water bottles, a few flashlights, and the first aid kit. But as soon as she got a few feet away from the hole, something fast and black jumped out of it. Jackie jumped back before realizing it was Nyx, her favorite Nightmare.

"Hi, girl!" Jackie greeted happily. She held her right hand out while Nyx snuffed it and eventually rubbed against it. Jackie smiled and stroked the Nightmare, her affection for the horse evident.

Pitch came out of the hole a few seconds later, wondering where Nyx had gone. He admitted, the name was starting to grow on him. Then he saw Jackie petting and stroking the Nightmare and a wave of so many different emotions rolled over him. "Well, someone's having fun," Pitch said, making Jackie jump.

"Oh, hi," she replied, recovering quickly. The teen turned to Pitch for a second and then continued stroking Nyx, who neighed out of pure affection.

"You're back," Pitch noted. His tone was cold, but on the inside, he was quite glad the teen had decided to come for another visit.

"What, did you miss me?" Jackie teased.

"Of course not," Pitch snapped back. Jackie smiled at him knowingly. She stopped stroking Nyx to put her attention on Pitch.

"Bit late on replying there," the other replied, putting her hands on her hips and tilting them to the left. Pitch rolled his eyes but didn't protest. Jackie smirked and stroked Nyx again.

The teen started visiting weekly, every Saturday, usually during the afternoon. Pitch suddenly found himself enjoying Jackie's visits and counting the days until she came again, with her beaten up maroon backpack with two PB&J sandwiches, an apple for Nyx, water, flashlights, and a first-aid kit that was one of the most complex ones Pitch had ever seen.

Jackie enjoyed asking questions, telling terrible yet funny jokes, and insulting Pitch. They were called... Burns? Yes, burns. Pitch wasn't bad at making them up on the spot after being taught a few quick lessons on the subject. He jokingly said that he had the potential to put Jackie out of business. Jackie told him not to get too ahead of himself.

One of Pitch's favorite things to do with Jackie was to answer her questions. And gods, did the teen have questions. But it was nice, maybe even fun to share the information he had obtained for years, decades, even centuries with someone that wasn't a Nightmare. And after a very short amount of time, Pitch realized he didn't mind having the child there.

One day, Jackie showed up with a couple of chairs. They were nice, but looked old. "They're from my place. Shut up," Jackie said when Pitch began protesting, "we never use them anyways. They've just been hiding in the basement for years, and my mom said it was okay. Of course, she might have been and probably was drunk, but eh." 

So Pitch added two old looking chairs to his cave that were light blue and slightly dirty. According to Jackie, she had tried to clean them up as best as she could. That touched Pitch's heart to hear this. Never, in all of his years as the Boogeyman, had anyone tried to do something nice or even remotely decent for him.

"Let me do something for you, then," Pitch insisted while helping Jackie move the chairs.

"You already have," Jackie replied, wiping her forehead. The fact that she had her hair tied was a sign of how hot the weather was becoming, seeing as the teen preferred to have her hair down.

"What? When?" Pitch asked, quickly scanning through his memories.

"First, you've answered a buttload of my questions. Second, these visits are pretty nice. They keep me sane. Third, well, you put up with me," said Jackie. Although she said it in a neutral tone, Pitch knew how sad and likely bitter she was on the inside after admitting that.

"You're pretty easy to 'put up with,'" Pitch said, making air quotes. Jackie smiled briefly, the corner of her mouth twitching upwards for a second.

Later

"Why do you come?" Pitch asked one day.

Jackie shrugged. "We've got a few things in common. We're both hated by the people who know us, we both feel like we're invisible, and neither of us have any friends." She pulled out a sandwich and held it out to Pitch, who took it with a word of thanks. "It's kinda nice knowing I have someone to rely on now."

Pitch said nothing but ate silently. Jackie, too, ate, but stopped halfway to give Nyx an apple. This girl... relied on him? Maybe even trusted him? His heart seemed to skip a beat as he thought. Instead of saying something assuring, Pitch let out what was supposed to be a cold laugh, but sounded awkward and forced. "Please. I'm a villain. Why would you rely on me?"

Jackie looked at him with a fierce and bold look in her eyes. "So if I threw myself off of a cliff, you would just sit there and do nothing?"

Pitch didn't respond.

"And you wouldn't miss me when you realized I was gone forever? No more bad jokes, angry rants, truckloads of questions, and sandwiches, you wouldn't miss any of it?"

That got the man's attention. Would he? Pitch realized that maybe the fact that he looked forward to the girl's visits meant... He cared for her. Even though the jokes were terrible, Pitch did enjoy them. And it was nice to have someone to talk to, even if it was only for one day a week.

And Jackie listened to his rants with the patience of a saint, and wasn't afraid to correct things he was angry about, or tell him why he was wrong. Pitch admired this boldness. He knew from experience that it took a lot of trust that you wouldn't get killed to tell someone what you thought about their opinions. Then again, she was rather bold and daring to begin with. Still admirable traits. 

Jackie also answered some of his questions about the human world. For example, why did adults seem to enjoy telling children they were wrong just because they were older? Jackie replied that she believed adults were too full of themself to admit that a kid was smarter than them. She also pointed out that Pitch sometimes did that, which he sometimes did. Not to Jackie, at least not now, but to others.

With a start, Pitch realized he couldn't run from it. Maybe the girl wasn't as bad as others like her. Maybe he even liked her.


	4. Chapter 4

One day, Pitch decided he would go through his storage. He figured it had been enough time since he'd died. He could get through it all without too much emotion. At first it wasn't anything too bad. Various books, some weather damaged, some not, articles of dark clothing (wow, he really needed to get that suit ironed), etc. Many things went into boxes for donation and/or trash, but some of it stayed with him. 

But it turned out he had a lot of things, and couldn't finish cleaning everything out. And it just so happened the next day was Saturday. Jackie walked into something sort of a mess. "Love what you've done with the place," she said sarcastically. 

Pitch tutted. "I'm cleaning," he replied, sorting through a box of old clothing.

"You want help?" Jackie asked. She stepped closer, footsteps echoing through the dark, more or less empty cave. Pitch shrugged and gestured to the boxes to the left of him. 

He said in a monotone voice, "Just throw away the broken things." Beside him Pitch heard a box open and a plastic lid being placed on the floor. An hour passed, Jackie asking a few questions about strange, old items she found, which she pocketed most of the time, but nothing else happening.

Jackie moved to another box and wolf-whistled. "Wow, this is some really old shit," she said, taking a longsword in a handsome leather sheath out of the box.

Pitch paled. Of course she had to find that box. She examined the sheath carefully, brushing off some dust. "It was... mine."

To his surprise, Jackie waited for a second. She examined his face for a second and put it to the side. "Kay." The teen kept on moving through the box without much expression on her face. She mutter-sung a pop song Pitch was sure he halfway recognized. He turned back to his own box and tried to sort out his thoughts. After another ten minutes (in which Jackie found a few very curious items) she took out a locket, which was circular and golden. It had an owl with large eyes engraved on it and Greek letters. Athens. "Thought lockets weren't made until the 16th century," she said, examining the thing.

"Athens was more advanced than you think," Pitch replied, looking up briefly. "We tried very hard to hide that part of us. So nobody else would know we were... different." 

"Different how?" Jackie replied, running a nail through the side in an attempt to find the opening.

Pitch paused. How could he explain such a thing? "Athens was... like a meeting place for the spirits. Many of us lived there, and the mortals around us flourished. But we were called gods instead of spirits. However, we feared what the world would think of us, do to us. So we hid ourselves, let the others believe we were like them."

At that exact moment, Jackie found the opening- a groove in the side of the locket- pressed her nail inside and flipped it open. And it was magic if nothing was. A large silvery gray castle with gold in its outlines popped up like a projection, glowing gently. Spirits of all kinds, each with their own expressions, clothing, and ways of transportation flew and walked around it, and a voice sang in the background. Jackie didn't recognize the language, but assumed it was ancient Greek. Her blue eyes lit up for a bit, the dim darkness usually covering them like a lens lifting. 

Pitch liked it. The darkness in her eyes made her look sad and depressed when she wasn't putting another emotion behind them. But it returned when she closed the thing and put it to the side. "You can keep it," he blurted suddenly. 

Jackie looked him him with a gentle curiousness. "Are you sure?"

The Boogeyman tried to regain his posture. "I mean, I don't care about it anymore. Obviously."

The teen stared at him for a while, trying to get her thoughts together. She shrugged and slipped it around her neck, then shoved the main locket down her shirt. "Thanks," she said, then began cleaning again. This time she hummed the melody coming out of the locket- well, the bits she remembered. 

Soon, he was suddenly protective of the child. If you dared to even try to harm her, heck, if you even tried to touch her? Ha. You would see whatever terrified you in her shadow. Pitch would make them run away crying for their mothers. Literally.

"And don't get me wrong, it's great for you to d-do that," Jackie said, trying and failing to stop a huge yawn. It was time for end-of-the-school-year-projects, and because Jackie was in middle school, she had to complete several projects in a span of one to two weeks. Pitch was horrified to see that his chi- the child looked like a zombie. That was how dark the bags under her eyes were. "But people say... Stuff, y'know? Everyone at school's convinced I'm a witch or something."

"I thought you didn't care about what they think," Pitch replied, slightly hurt.

"Yeah, I know, I know..." Jackie muttered, rubbing her forehead.

Pitch's hurt washed away with pity replacing it. "Get some sleep, would you?" he said, worry in his voice. "You look like you pulled five all-nighters in a row." Which, Pitch realized, she probably did.

No reply. "Jackie?" Pitch asked softly. He leaned towards the girl and then realized she had fallen asleep. Nyx looked at Pitch with an obvious statement in her eyes- Well, let's go take her home. The man sighed and picked up the sleeping child bridal-style as gently as he could. Nyx and Pitch faded into the shadows, arriving in her bedroom shortly afterwards.

Jackie sighed contentedly and gently moved herself closer to Pitch, whose heart warmed at the sight. This girl was special. And she was also special to Pitch. More special than anyone had ever been to him in his second life as the Boogeyman.

Shortly afterwards, Pitch put Jackie down on her bed, where she snoozed on and rolled over. Nyx faded into the shadows under her bed, there to protect the girl from anything that might come in the night. Pitch nodded to the Nightmare and travelled outside with the shadows. He looked up at the moon, not with resent or bitterness, but with a thankful look in his eyes.

Perhaps the man who believed to be heartless was nothing of the sort. Perhaps this marvelous teenager who would have been ordinary to anyone else had recovered Pitch's heart for him. Either way, Pitch had finally found a believer. One who cared about him, and one who he cared about.


	5. Chapter 5

Jack flew to the North Pole right after seeing the Northern Lights illuminate the night sky. They were beautiful, yes, but Jack knew that their meaning was for much more than entertainment. It was North's way of telling the others to come ASAP. And just when the winter spirit was going to make it snow in Russia.

By the time Jack had arrived at the Pole, the rest of the Guardians had already arrived. He apologized for his lateness to the silent room. Jingle offered him eggnog and cookies, which Jack politely declined. Then he noticed the full moon was out, even though it was daytime. "He has important message," North said simply, his full attention on the center of the room.

They all waited. Then, a large, blue crystal rose out of the ground, in the center of the carving of all the Guardians on the floor. Jack had been added, which he was proud of. Though sometimes, he found himself trying to prove to himself he belonged there. In the shadow of the crystal, Pitch formed, laughing. Then, a figure formed in the light above the crystal. In bright blue, a figure stood.

Jack knew what everyone else was thinking, He certainly knew what he was thinking. The figure looked exactly like him as a 13 year old, but female. The figure's hair was shoulder-length and messy. She wore fingerless gloves, a hoodie, leggings, and Converse sneakers. Her arms were crossed and her hip was tilted to the right, on her face a look clearly saying, 'Mess with me. I dare you.' The teen's body was thin, but not frail.

"Jack," Tooth said, at a loss for what else to say. Even the elves and the yetis had stopped working to come see why everyone was so quiet. And they were shocked as well.

"I don't know who she is," Jack replied, surprised he could form the words. Just then, the figure faded and words formed. Jack guessed that because of the others' looks, this had never happened before. They read, 'Jackie Frost. Burgess. Find her.' It looked handwritten and messy.

'Jackie?' the winter spirit thought. The others seemed to be thinking along these same lines. The moon went away as well as the crystal, and the yetis and elves went back to work. Sandy, however, was making symbols with sand clearly yelling, "Let's go!" Jack nodded to Sandy, who smiled gratefully.

"Sandy's right, let's go," Jack said to the silence in the room. The Guardians looked at him and nodded. Bunny opened his mouth, to which Jack replied, "I already said I don't know her."

Bunny scoffed and replied, "Nah, who's gonna go get her?"

Jack blinked. Tooth said, "He's right, we can't all go."

They looked at Jack, who sighed and grabbed his staff. "See you soon," the winter spirit said, flying out of the Pole and heading towards Burgess. The fight wasn't that long, but it did take a few minutes. Jack then noticed something in his path and stopped. He hovered and the obstacle turned to look at him.

"Oh, sorry, mon amie," the person said, evidently French and male. He was blond, tan, slightly muscular, had beautiful blue eyes, and large, light pink angel-like wings on his back. Jack felt the blood rising to his cheeks immediately and knew this had to be Cupid.

"It's no problem," Jack replied, still blushing furiously. The other smirked. "You must be Cupid. I'm Jack Frost."

Cupid replied, "Nice to meet you, Jack. Where are you off to in such a hurry?" Jack noticed the other's English was nearly perfect. The winter spirit explained about the girl and his mission.

"Ah, I see. Well, don't let me keep you. Bonne chance, mignonne." Jack stared at him blankly. "Good luck, cutie," the love spirit translated, smirking and flying away.

The other hovered there when the wind gave him a gentle nudge. "Right. Burgess. Let's go," Jack said, trying to shake off his blush and letting the wind take him away.

In Burgess

Jack realized that Jamie and Sofie along with their friends would be older as he landed. 'Time really does fly,' he thought. He landed on the sidewalk, only to see two children start walking frantically towards him. The winter spirit figured it wouldn't hurt to say hi to a couple of friends, and besides, they could have some much needed information.

Sofie's hair was longer and less messy, and she had ditched her fairy wings. Her facial features and height suggested that she was older. Jamie, too, had grown taller and looked older, but both still had their characteristic smiles as they walked towards Jack, who smiled and waited. Jamie got to Jack first, giving him a hug. Jack still had to drop down to his knees to hug the two, but it would work.

"Hey, you two," Jack greeted, standing up properly again.

"Hi, Jack," Sofie said, her English better than it was last time he'd heard it.

"So, is it finally snowball fight time?" Jamie asked with a mischievous gleam in his eye.

"Well... Not exactly. D'you two know about a girl named Jackie?" Jamie's eyes widened in fear at the sound of the girl's name, and Jack remembered the look on the teen's face. Was she a bully? Sofie, however, nodded.

"Yeah. She's nice, but people make mean rumors about her," the girl responded.

Jamie shuddered and responded, "Look, Sofie, it was that one time-"

"Right, because it's totally not like Rosa and her little girl gang to ruin people's lives," Sofie snapped back. Jack was shocked, realizing that time had given Sofie a new personality.

Her brother just sighed, knowing that he wouldn't be able to change the other's mind. "Well, is she mean to you two?" Jack asked.

"No, not at all," Sofie responded. Jamie reluctantly nodded. "But she did beat up a guy who tried to mug her, so watch out."

Jack nodded, his fear of the teenager growing by the second, a knot forming in his stomach. "Okay, thanks, you two. You can expect snow tomorrow!" He flew away, and then realized something. Jamie and Sofie had barely even begun saying their "good-bye's" when Jack flew towards them again.

"Where does she live?" Sofie laughed and pointed to a house across the street. Jack nodded and left again. The two children were still laughing.

Jack got to the house rather quickly. The curtains were closed, the windows and doors locked. He also noticed that there were burglar alarms everywhere. It was a good thing he didn't trigger them. The winter spirit was confused as to what to do, so he decided to wait. He flew around all of the windows, and with a shock, the curtains on one of them opened...


	6. Chapter 6

Nyx huffed and jumped out from under the teen's bed. Something was off, she could feel it. It had only been an hour since Pitch had left. It was Nyx's job to look out for Jackie, now. Anything could happen. And, remembering the love and admiration that came off of the teen whoever Nyx was with her, she thought, 'The other Nightmares really are missing out.'

With a slight spike of pride but fear and anticipation of what would happen, the Nightmare sniffed around. Quickly, the danger was located to outside of the house, right behind the closed window. She nudged Jackie until she woke up. The teen woke up with a start, then rubbed her eyes.

"What's up, girl?" Jackie asked drowsily. She yawned and stretched. The Nightmare tossed her head towards the window, neighing in distress.

That woke Jackie up. She understood. "Good girl," Jackie said, getting out of her bed, snatching her pocket knife off of her bed stand, because smart people don't sleep with knives in their pockets. She got up slowly as to not make any noise. Nyx also walked next to her slowly as they approached the window, Jackie holding her knife in front of her. They both got about half a foot away from the window and made a defensive stance.

Jackie and Nyx looked at each other. Nyx nodded, and Jackie stared at the closed curtains. And for the first time, fear flew off of the teen. It shocked the Nightmare, it really did. It almost made her forget her mission to protect her, but she snapped out of it when Jackie opened the curtains and jumped back.

It was him. Jack Frost. Then, Nyx realized something. They looked... Almost the same. Nyx could tell this was running through Jackie's head as well. Turn the white hair black, make it shoulder-length, make the facial features more feminine, make him shorter, there you have it. He floated in front of the girl's window. More fear began to come off of Jackie, but not much.

"Go get him when I say so," Jackie muttered, so silently Nyx could barely hear it, and she was right next to the teen. It was understood between the two who "him" was. How could it not be?

Jackie opened the window hesitantly, her eyes never leaving Jack. The winter spirit smiled and made to get in, but Jackie pointed her knife towards the winter spirit's throat. The other's smile quickly faded, his eyes drifting between Jackie and Nyx, his mouth open. The teen feigned surprise well, and turned to Nyx. Then she mouthed, "Go." The Nightmare went into the shadows, but stayed.

"What was that?!" Jackie exclaimed. The winter spirit looked relieved.

"A Nightmare," Jack replied.

"A what?" the other asked. The white-haired teen explained. Nyx had to give it to Jackie, the girl could act. Her facial expressions were very on-point. "And who're you?" Jackie finally asked.

"Jack Frost, spirit of winter, Guardian of fun," Jack replied, giving the teen a mischievous smile. Jackie replied with an eyebrow raise. "Wait, you can see me?"

Jackie rolled her eyes. "Obviously."

"But- How?"

The teen shrugged. "I've always believed that there was more out there than we thought there could ever be. Winter spirits? Sure. Nightmare sand horses? Why not? You know?"

Jack nodded. Then Jackie asked, "Why're you here?"

Oh, no. This was not going as expected. Although, it was only natural she'd have questions. Jack quickly said, "I'll give you answers if you come to the North Pole with me."

Jackie raised her eyebrows. It wasn't the answer she wanted. Then again, it could be the only answer she got. Jack swallowed, waiting. Something about negotiations- sometimes you had to wait for an answer.

"Fine," Jackie replied, sounding annoyed. A wave of relief washed over Jack. He didn't know how the Guardians would react if he didn't bring Jackie back. They would probably have been disappointed.

Jackie assumed that she would get her answers on who exactly lived in the North Pole when she got there. But it didn't feel like the right time to ask right there and then. She put her knife back in her pocket.

"Okay! Great! So, uh, d'you mind getting on my back?" Jack asked. Then he mentally face-palmed himself. That sounded creepy.

"Why?" Jackie replied, playing the fool. Of course Pitch had told her about Jack's ability to fly. But it was best for the both of them, mainly Pitch, if she pretended not to know anything. And she was pretty good at that.

"Well, I can fly, and it's the fastest way to get to the Pole," Jack explained.

Jackie nodded, to Jack's relief. She got on Jack's back in a piggyback form, which Nyx took as her sign to go tell Pitch about what happened.

And so, Jackie was flying on some stranger's back. The wind whipped her face sharply, her hair flying. She loved it. Something about the rush of the wind, the bitter cold, something about it made her love it. And then she saw the Pole herself. Wow.

Icicles so large they had to be longer than Jackie and Jack's height combined hung on the cliff. Sometimes what looked like a railroad peeked out from under the ice, with bright lights illuminating it. And then the building had a round roof, which looked like steel or something metal, and was dark red. And then there were the amount of windows to take into hand. There were maybe... 15 or 20 that she could see, all lit up with golden lights. Next to it was a tower of similar height and modeling to the building. Similar looking roof, coloring, windows, etc.

When the two of them landed inside, four other people including what Jack said were yetis (like Bigfoot but a little shorter and nicer looking) and elves (short things wearing red cone-shaped clothes that went on their heads with a jingle bell on top along with a wide belt and striped leggings reaching the heels of their feet) waited.

What unnerved Jack the most was the fact that Jackie didn't seem to be phased. Instead, she clenched her jaw and continued walking. It was shocking and inspiring to see. Perhaps it was because she knew she could easily win in a battle against them. Jack highly doubted that, but it was plausible.

Jackie knew from Pitch that Sandy was the plump, short man whose hair was spiky and fluffy looking, sort of like pointed clouds, and golden. His body seemed to be made of yellow sand and wore sand-textured robes that were a similar color to his body and hair, his eyes golden and warm. North was the one with long white hair and a long white beard. His eyes were big and blue, looking to be full of wonder. He was tall, buff, and a little... Wide in the stomach area. He wore a long sleeved red shirt that was rolled up slightly. He had tattoos on his arms and a pattered belt looking piece of cloth around his waist. He had long black pants that were baggy and leather boots.

The Tooth Fairy looked to be half human, half hummingbird. Her feathers were blue, green, and yellow. Her wings were iridescent and looked like a fairy's. She flew a few inches about the floor. Her eyes were pink, her eyelashes rounded at the tips. The Easter Bunny's fur was gray-blue, with flower-like imprints on his forehead and shoulders. He was tall, for sure, six to seven feet. On his back was a leather holster for what looked like boomerangs. He had leather bracers set with orange stones on his forearms and brown string wrapped around his feet. His eyes were bright emerald green.

Jackie didn't know whether to say hi or to demand answers. Instead, she put her hand in her pocket. She knew Jack's eyes were on her, but she didn't care. Jackie focused on weak spots. On all the males, of course, where the sun don't shine. Tooth would be more difficult. Maybe her wings? They would be hard to reach, but they were a start. Jack, his staff. According to Pitch, he was useless without it. Although, he could fix it, which would be a catch.

"Hi, Jackie. We've heard a bit about you," Tooth greeted enthusiastically. She flew towards Jackie, who took a step back, her eyes flashing a warning. It reminded Jack of a rattlesnake he'd once met, but without the rattle.

"You're probably wondering why you're here. Well-" Tooth said. She stoped mid sentence, looking at something behind Jackie with wide eyes. The rest of them maintained a similar expression. Jackie closed her eyes in annoyance. She knew exactly what they were looking at. She turned, and lo and behold-

"Give. Her. BACK."


	7. Chapter 7

Pitch glared at the Guardians, Nyx huffing angrily at his side. How dare they trick Jackie into going with them? No, how dare he trick her into going with him? How dare Jack Frost do something like that?!

"Hey, Pitch," Jackie said, dropping her 'I'm-the-idiot' charade. The others' jaws hit the floor when Pitch nodded in response.

"What are you doing here?" Pitch snapped at Jackie.

Jackie sighed. "Calm down, P.B. I got questions, they got answers." And now the others were absolutely dumbfounded.

"You- You two know each other?" Jack asked quietly, lowering his staff. Apparently the others went into defense mode while Jackie had her back turned.

"Hm," Jackie replied, examining her nails. "We're friends." Friends?!

"Whoa, whoa. Back up. You're friends with him?!" Bunny cried in his Australian accent. The other Guardians shared equal looks of disbelief. What Jackie wouldn't give to have a camera... She instead crossed her arms and tilted her hips to the right, her signature death-glare on her face.

"Yes. Problem?" Jackie asked cooly.

"Come on! He's the bad guy! How can you be friends with him?" Bunny asked, scoffing. Pitch shuffled, apparently uncomfortable. Jackie shot him a comforting look, then continued to glare at the others. Mainly Bunny.

She let out a noise a lot like an angry horse's. "You know what? I'm out of here. No answers are worth putting up with you. Nyx?" Jackie said cooly.

The Nightmare allowed Jackie to slide on her back. Pitch turned to the two.

"Wha- Wait a min-" Jack started saying, but it was too late. With a last glance of pure fury from Jackie, the odd trio left in the shadows.

"Well, good job, Bunny. You just pushed her away! Now I have to get her again!" Jack yelled. Bunny, to his annoyance, just rolled his eyes and looked away. Jack cursed under his breath.

"Change of plan. Next time, we throw her in sack and toss her in magic portal," North said. Jack groaned. He began to argue, but North was already telling the yetis what to do. That was going to be great. Just great.

Magical... Place skip

"He's the bad guy! How can you be friends with him?" Pitch, against his will, kept on repeating those words in his mind until it seemed like they would become engrained in his memory for the rest of eternity. It made him question a lot. Why was Jackie friends with him? He knew she had explained this before, but a nagging voice in his mind told him otherwise. That she was just lying to mess with his feelings. That nobody would actually want to be friends with him.

And part of him agreed. And besides, Jackie deserved to be friend with someone who wasn't hated by the entire world. At first he thought that the Guardians wanted to know everything about him, but the fact that Jackie said that she was the one asking questions threw him off.

But still. What if someone else wanted answers about Pitch? Somebody Jackie trusted? Or someone that could persuade Jackie more heavily than the Guardians? Someone like... Ao.... He shivered. Ao, the spirit of light, hated Pitch. She had tried to kill him multiple times. What if she tortured Jackie for answers? What if-

"Yo, P.B. You there?" Jackie asked. They were back in Pitch's lair, sitting down. She was explaining how Jack had shown up at her window and everything else.

"Jackie. You need to stop coming here," Pitch said in his most serious tone. He hid his sadness with good acting.

Jackie sighed and put her head in her hands. She then pulled her head up and said, "Nah," leaning back in the chair. The teen crossed her legs and arms, waiting.

"Jackie-" Pitch began, exasperated, before being cut off by Jackie.

"No. Do you know what it's like to be a 13 year old girl in a world where you have zero friends at school and no reliable parents?!" Jackie snapped back, raising her voice ate last sentence. "And- And the only people you can rely on is a man who people don't even think exist and horse that only you and a few others can see!" Jackie screamed, standing, her voice echoing in the dark cave... Thing.

Pitch sat there in silence as tears started falling down Jackie's face. "Jackie..." he whispered. Nyx nudged Jackie, who started wiping her eyes fiercely, as if that would stop the tears. He moved toward her.

"I'm fine." Jackie cleared her throat, tears finally over. "I'm fine," she said more strongly. "I should probably get home," the teen said quietly. Pitch paused, trying to come up with a reason why she should stay. He come up with nothing, and nodded. Jackie turned to leave. Pitch waved, Nyx following Jackie. As she reached the exit, she turned on her head. "Don't listen to the kangaroo. Okay?"

How did she know? But before he could ask, Jackie gave Pitch a sly smile and left.


	8. Chapter 8

Jack was glad he could convince North to use some Dreamsand to knock Jackie out before bringing her to the Pole instead of his... other plan. He had felt it was a bit sudden, trying to bring Jackie back just a day after her last visit, but North insisted that it needed to be done. So, Jack waited anxiously with the North, Tooth, Sandy, and Bunny for the yetis and Sandy. Who knew what she was going to do when she woke up? Probably attempt to kill them. Jack hoped not.

When the yetis arrived with Jackie in a sack, Jack was a bunch of nervous... Nerves. He kept on fidgeting, trying not to look at the sack yet stealing glances at it. The winter spirit nervously gripped his staff. He would hate to attack a kid, but some things needed to be done. The yetis gently pulled Jackie out of the sack and propped her up. That was the exact moment the Dreamsand wore off.

Jack's fears nearly came true. When Jackie woke, she blinked a few times, then began attacking the yetis so they would let go of her. Jack froze with fear. He wished he could see what Jackie was doing, but she was moving so quickly it was hard to tell. The teen seemed like a blur. The yetis had enough sense to let go, of course, and quickly stepped away.

Then she rounded on the Guardians. The teen pulled out her usual pocket knife, looking at all five of them, and then pointed it at North. Go big or go home. North then nudged Jack. "Oh- Uhm- Hi," Jack said, improvising. He mentally cringed as he attempted a smile (and failed miserably). Jackie raised her eyebrow, but kept her knife pointed at North. Jack could see North rubbing the bridge of his nose from the corner of his eye.

Thankfully, Tooth flew forward and said, "Hello, Jackie. I'm the Tooth Fairy, and this is Sandy, North, Bunny, and you know Jack." Jackie kept her expressionless face and nodded.

Then, she said, "What d'you want from me?" All hope that Jackie's curiosity would rule over her suspicion had faded. Now Jack was really scared of what was going to happen next. None of them knew the teen well enough to know what she would do next.

"We don't want you, Man in Moon does," North responded.

Jackie lowered her knife for a second, then raised it again quickly. "Why?" was the only thing she said. Jack thought, 'She's in shock.' It was no surprise to any of the Guardians that Jackie knew who the Man in the Moon was, especially if her claims to be friends with Pitch were legitimate. Then the winter spirit realized that she likely knew a lot about the Guardians, maybe even about other spirits. This was bad for the teen. Many spirits would love to get their hands on a teenager who knew everything about everyone. He'd only wished Pitch that thought of that first...

"We think it has something to do with Pitch," Bunny responded, his tone indicating that he hadn't forgotten about their last argument.

Jackie rolled her eyes and sighed. She put her knife away carefully, as if making sure it was going to be safe. Then she turned to the Guardians and said, "You can tell the Man in the Moon to kiss my ass. No."

"No?" Bunny asked angrily, his temper rising.

"Bunny-" Tooth warned, but it was already too late. The volcano had erupted. The storm had begun. The- Okay, that's enough descriptive phrases.

"Oy, this is the world at stake we're talking about here!" the Easter Bunny raged. Jack groaned in frustration. Now was not the right time to make an outburst like a five year old!

"Bunny-" North interrupted, a warning in his voice. His lips pressed against each other tightly as Bunny went on.

"And you're just going to say 'No'? Why, because you two are friends?" Bunny asked. Jackie might as well have been shooting fire out of her eyes, she looked so furious.

"Shut up," she said. Bunny ignored her and went on. 'Bad choice,' Jack thought. The others seemed to have come to the same decision to let Bunny and Jackie work things out. Not like they could stop Bunny anyways.

"He's nothing but a no-good, lying, manipulative-" the kangaroo- I mean- rabbit went on.

"Shut. UP," Jackie hissed, now not sounded entirely human. Jack shivered, but it wasn't because of the cold. It was like something... Darker, not human, laid beneath her voice.

"You know what? If he had a chance to take over the world, he would probably just chuck you out like the rest!"

"I said, SHUT UP!" Jackie roared. Her voice was human and not human at the same time, like Jack had heard it before, but stronger. Something dark and sinister yet also cold sounding was spiked in her voice, laced underneath it carefully.

The moonlight hit her face even though it was daytime, and to Jack's surprise (and fear), her left eye turned white and began glowing, a clock-like design inside, and the other eye... The other eye turned black, and seemed... Dark. Hollow. Like... Like if Jack went inside, he would never get out. That wasn't it. The teen turned about twenty pounds thinner before their eyes, and given her original weight, it was no surprise that her skin pressed against her bones. Then, as if nothing had happened, the moonlight faded away, and Jackie's face had returned to normal.

"He's better to me than the lot of you. Why should I trust any of you?" Jackie snapped, clearly unaware of what had happened.

Jack slowly gathered up his courage and replied, sounding much smaller than he would like, "Well, it is kind of our job to protect the children of the world."

Jackie turned towards him. Jack shifted uneasily under her stare. "I'm supposed to be protected by people who can't look me in the eyes without being scared?" she replied cooly, mockingly.

Nobody answered, because she was kind of right. Everybody in the room, including the yetis and the elves, gave off a wave of fear so strong that it could allow Pitch to take over the world again. It was so quiet that Jack could hear Tooth's wings working, and the gentle clinking of the bells on the elves' hats.

Finally, Jack blurted, "Why do you trust him so much?" He couldn't stop himself. The question had been gnawing on his mind ever since Pitch had showed up in the Pole.

"Reasons," Jackie cooly replied, examining her nails without much interest.

Jack raised an eyebrow and, without thinking, said, "Reasons? There's got to be an answer to why Bunny could make you crack in a minute."

"Same reason you saved your sister," Jackie replied, her attention now focused on Jack. Her blue eyes more cold than a blizzard. Jack shivered again, but he was still very, very shocked.

"Jack, what is she talking about?" North asked, his tone of voice a little commanding, but very curious.

"You had a sister?!" Bunny asked incredulously. Tooth and Sandy just gaped at him.

"How did you..." Jack trailed off. He didn't know what to say.

"Jackie Mary Frost. The story of Jack Frost, the real story, was passed down in my family- our family- for... Three generations, including me," Jackie replied.

"Wait a minute. We're related?!" Jack exclaimed, his head working hard to wrap his mind around that thought.

Jackie rolled her eyes and replied, "No shit, Sherlock."

Jack thought for a minute. Then he said, "So... My sister-?" He didn't have to continue. Jackie knew what he was going to say. 'She told people my story?'

"Yeah. As a way to say thanks, I guess," Jackie responded. Jack teared up little bit.

"Who told her about the Man in the Moon?" Jack asked.

Jackie replied, "My theory is Manny did it himself. Although, nobody knows for sure, since everyone in my family except for my dad and I thought it was nonsense." She let Jack absorb this information for a minute. Then she said, "Can I go home now?"

Moonlight filled the room. It was slightly brighter than before. And for a second, Jackie's eyes were as Jack had seen them before. Her facial expression suddenly turned cold. One eye turned white, the other black. Her body was suddenly so thin her bones were showing. The others gasped. Then, as suddenly as it had came, the moonbeam was gone, and Jackie was back to normal.

Silence filled the room, just as it had many times before when Jackie was at the Pole. She looked confused, unaware of what had happened. "Why're you looking at me like I just died?" Jackie asked.

Nobody answered. Then, North snapped out of it after a few seconds and got a snow globe out of his coat. He gave it to Jackie and said, "Tell it where you want to go and throw it." Jackie raised her eyebrow yet followed his directions. The snow globe formed her house, then she said something else to it.

Jackie looked at the Guardians and nodded. Jack waved weakly. She turned and threw the snow globe somewhat gently and walked through it. It closed behind her shortly afterwards.

'Manny...' Jack thought. 'What the fuck have you gotten us into?'


	9. Chapter 9

When Jackie was finally back in Burgess, she got the keys to her house from a small pocket in her sleeve. As the teen unlocked the door, she asked herself a lot of questions. For example, 'Why were they staring at me like that?' and 'What does the Man in the Moon want with me?' Jackie walked into her house slowly, taking off her shoes at the entrance.

She considered falling asleep on the couch, just plopping down and going to sleep, but decided against it. Checking the clock on the wall, it was 12 in the morning. "Great," Jackie muttered under her breath sarcastically. Something about breaking the silence made her feel uneasy.

The teen walked into her room and turned on the lights only to find a frantic looking Pitch and worried Nyx. Jackie mentally groaned. She didn't even think about the two of them, but almost knew what their reaction was going to be. As Jackie assumed they would, the pair turned on her as soon as she walked inside. "Hi," she said, leaning against the doorway.

Pitch looked furious. "Where. Were. You?" The question was more of a demand.

Jackie sighed and explained. Pitch's expression would have been funny if everything wasn't so serious. Jackie did leave out the part about the Guardians looking at her like she had died those two times, though. Pitch did seem suspicious, but decided not to question it. Jackie was grateful for that. As good as the teen was at lying, she didn't think she could come up with something right then and there.

The teen already knew Pitch would freak out if she told him about what she left out. She decided it was best to speak to the Guardians about it, who were closest to the Man in the Moon. The questions formed again. Why was the Man in the Moon looking for her?

Pitch sighed. It pained Jackie to see how tired he looked. Nyx rubbed her snout against his hand, worried. "Sleep. It's past midnight," Pitch said, gesturing to Jackie's bed.

"You should get some sleep, too," Jackie told Pitch gently. He just nodded. Then, the man raised his arm and hesitantly put his hand on her shoulder. Pitch squeezed the teen's shoulder as Nyx moved under Jackie's bed as usual. Pitch gave Jackie one last glance as he let go of her shoulder and left. Jackie then flopped down on her bed and fell asleep right there and then. She was too tired to brush her teeth, change into her pajamas, and wash her face.

The next day, Jackie woke up at around 6 in the morning. She was glad it was Sunday, and even more happy that school would end the next week. The teen greeted Nyx, who neighed in response, and then got ready for the day. She wore a pair of denim shorts that went to her knees, a white T-shirt, and a belt that was like a utility belt but with only a few small pouches. One of them had her house key, another had her library card and about $50 in cash, and the last one had her pocket knife. In Jackie's back pocket was her phone. She made sure it was all there, then said goodbye to Nyx as and walked out of her room.

Ten minutes later, Jackie walked inside of the library, which was small but thankfully cool, much better than the warm yet humid outside air. The teen soaked in some of the air conditioning and then went to the used bookstore. She looked around and left. Then, the teen checked out a book about Greek mythology and walked back. Even though she was in the city, Jackie enjoyed the little greenery she could find. The teen was tempted to go into the candy store, but resisted.

At home, Jackie read "Alice in Wonderland" after making lunch for herself. By the time she was finished reading it was dinnertime, so the teen cooked up chili and cornbread. The chili was in a can, the cornbread frozen. It tasted alright. Afterwards, Jackie spent a few hours scrolling through Tumblr on her computer. Her mother paid for the electricity, water, WiFi, and... Other things. Jackie did not want to know how she got the money. The teen also received a monthly allowance for how many chores she did, but she needed proof she did them. So many of the texts between Jackie and her mother were pictures of a clean kitchen, clean bathroom, raked and mowed lawn, etc.

Eventually, 10 pm came. Jackie knew it was a bit early, but she decided to go to bed anyways. She was still tired from last night, and needed her energy for school the next day. Jackie sighed as she got ready for bed.

Two hours later, Jackie was fast asleep. Then a voice, whimsical and playful, said, "Jackie!" into the night. The teen, of course, woke up. She was never a heavy sleeper. The voice echoed and sounded close, like it was coming from the middle of the room. The only thing Jackie could confirm was that the voice was a young girl's.

"Jackie!" the voice cried out again. The teen stood up, all drowsiness gone, and opened her window. She looked outside to see if someone was pranking her or something. But nobody was outside. Besides, that wouldn't explain why the sound seemed to be so close. Despite it being in the middle of the night, it was still warm and humid outside. Jackie planned on moving somewhere else, maybe California, because she hated the humidity.

"Jackie!" She looked down. She was only on the first floor... And she wanted answers. But what about Pitch? He would worry and follow Jackie. The teen settled with telling Nyx, "I'll be back." Then, as if that explained everything. Jackie closed her window, locked it, drew the curtains, and ran to the exit. She rushed to put her shoes on and left, grabbing a house key and her knife.

"Jackie!" The voice cried. But it sounded further away than it did the other times.

Jackie sighed. "I'm coming, I'm coming," she said, already looking around. The teen decided the voice came from the forest that time, so that was where she walked towards.

"Jackie!" Walking soon became running. Running became sprinting, all fed off of adrenaline. Jackie didn't stop running until her lungs began screaming for air. She listened, and the voice seemed to be calling her every thirty seconds. Maybe that meant she was getting closer.

Jackie looked at the moon, then used her internal clock to decide that it had been half an hour. 'Frick,' she thought. Then she realized it was probably the moon, more precisely the Man in the Moon, making her do this. And for some reason, her blood started boiling in her veins. It was him that made her go through all this. The wild goose chase for answers.

"You're behind this, aren't you?" Jackie said. She knew that she probably sounded crazy, talking to the moon, but she didn't care. The teen knew a bit of information, but not the information she wanted to know. "Well, guess what? I'm not playing your stupid game anymore." And so, Jackie turned on her heel and began walking towards her home.

That took about an hour. So it was 1:30 by the time she saw her house again. She went inside and took off her shoes. Fear ran through her body as Jackie walked into her room. But to her luck, Pitch wasn't there. Nyx was, of course, but she'd obviously trusted that Jackie was okay.

"Thank you," the teen said to the Nightmare. The response she got was a small neigh. As Jackie plopped down on her bed, she fell asleep instantly without any time to think.


	10. Chapter 10

North paced in his office. He and the Guardians were stumped and... Well, scared. The thought of having Jackie back at the North Pole, with the power she said, whatever it was, and with those eyes... It was enough to even make Attila the Hun afraid. And especially since Jackie was so terrifying to begin with... She could walk into the room and scare everyone inside it with one glance.

Outside, Tooth, Bunny, Sandy, and Jack were having a discussion.

"Can you do that?" Bunny asked Jack, who was zoning out.

"Do what?" Jack responded, snapping out of it.

"That... Angry... Scary glance she can do?" Bunny responded. Everyone shivered at the mention. It was that scary.

"Come on, Bunny. Jack? Spirit of fun? I don't think so," Tooth responded. Bunny visibly relaxed a little bit. Sandy gave Tooth a thumbs-up with golden sand.

"She's right," Jack replied. Bunny relaxed more. He tried to replicate Jackie's terrifying stare, practicing on Bunny.

"Needs work, mate," Bunny said. Jack stuck his tongue out at Bunny, who suddenly frowned, looking like he just come upon a sudden realization. "I don't remember her every going to any egg hunts."

Tooth and Sandy paled. Jack was pretty sure he did, too. They realized the same thing as Bunny pointed it out. Jack responded, sounding like he was trying to reassure himself more than the others, "Well, when's the last time you've been out in the field?"

"I go out in the field every Easter," Bunny said, sounding mockingly offended, but more nervous. That just made the others more scared.

"I don't remember the fairies ever collecting her teeth, either," Tooth said, sounding panicked.

"You check to see whose teeth all of the fairies collect?!" Jack asked. No wonder she never collected the teeth. She would never have time.

"I can communicate with them telepathically," Tooth responded, shocking Jack. He didn't have much time to think about it, though, as Sandy made signs above his head saying he had never seen her, either.

"I've never seen her before, either," Jack said. "But she believes... Because of..." Jack choked up. Everyone understood what he meant to say. Because of his sister.

Inside of his office, North had come into the same realization. He checked his "Nice" and "Naughty" list not two times, but three times. Jackie's name was on neither list. He walked out of his office to have the others confirm his fears. Neither of them had seen the teen before.

In desperation, North turned to the moon. "Manny, please... What do we do?"

They waited. Then, they heard a mystical, deep voice. "Find her. Keep her at the Pole."

"But why?" Jack blurted. They got an answer and another question.

The voice replied, sounded grim, "To avoid death." Everyone was suddenly silent. Jack wished he never got an answer.

"Who would want to kill her?" Jack asked. Then the others looked at each other, like they were trying to decide who would tell him.

Eventually, Tooth said, "Well... There's one spirit..."

Jack paled. "What?! That's crazy!"

North sighed. "Not exactly her, but Pitch. Her name is Ao. She's the spirit of light. She would do anything to join the Guardians, and has become convinced that killing Pitch is the way to do it."

Jack stood in shock. He finally managed to say, "But... Spirits can't die. Right?"

"They can if enough damage is sustained to their body," Tooth replied. She sounded like somebody had already died.

"Why does she think killing Pitch is the best way to become a Guardian? And also, why would she kill Jackie?" Jack asked.

"She thinks if she gets rid of Pitch, the children will be happy because their nightmares and fears will stop. And she would probably use Jackie as bait," North explained.

"Isn't that first bit kinda good?" Jack said.

Everyone shook their heads. "If all fear was gone, can you imagine the amount of stupid things children would do? When Pitch first fell, so many got hurt. We had to help him regain some of his strength afterwards," Tooth said.

Jack let that sink in. "I'll get her," Jack said, grabbing onto his staff.

"Now? It's two in the morning in Burgess!" Bunny cried.

"This is life and death!" Jack cried.

"I'm sure Ao isn't going to attack her now!" Bunny yelled back.

"You don't know that!" Jack yelled at him.

"Jack, please, be reasonable. Ao wants to become a Guardian, but she's self-absorbed. She wouldn't be willing to give up her 'beauty sleep' for that," Tooth said with a pleading voice.

Jack let out a frustrated sighed and loosened his grip on his staff. "Fine. I'll wait until the morning."

The others groaned, but Jack didn't care. He would go in the morning, and nobody could stop him. He wasn't sure why he felt so entitled to save the teenager. But still, he was scared. Very, very scared. Yet he knew it was the right thing to do, and that mattered more than anything.


	11. Chapter 11

Jackie carefully slid down into the entrance to Pitch's lair. As usual, she was using a rope, with her backpack and its contents already thrown down the tunnel. "Hey, PB," Jackie said, walking out of the short tunnel leading to Pitch's underground lair. Pitch waved from the chairs, a little bit away from the teen. Jackie walked to Pitch and sat down on the vacant chair. Nyx materialized out of the shadows next to her.

As Jackie began petting Nyx, Pitch said, "School's over by now, yes?"

Jackie nodded. "How do you know that?" she then asked, realizing she'd never talked about school much. Not with Pitch, anyways. Yes, she complained about the workload, but never spoke about summer break.

"The children. They make so much noise, it's impossible to get any rest," Pitch replied scathingly. Jackie suppressed a laugh.

"It's only for two months," Jackie said teasingly. Pitch rolled his eyes.

"Are you planning on doing anything during the summer?" Pitch asked.

Jackie looked like she was thinking, frowning slightly. "Nothing worth mentioning," she finally decided.

"Would it pain your mother to take you on one trip?" Pitch asked bitterly. It was common knowledge between the two of them how much Pitch hated Jackie's mother, named Natalie. It was another thing they had in common.

"Not like I would want to go," Jackie replied in a similar tone. "She'd probably just shove me in a hotel room for a weekend and then make me take a plane home. Of course, I'd probably sneak out and leave early or maybe go to a few shops, but still."

"Where does she get the money for everything?" Pitch asked.

Jackie shrugged. "I dunno. From what I know about her, she's probably a stripper or something." 

Pitch nodded. "Any word from the Guardians?"

"Some of the yetis are either tracking or guarding me," Jackie responded. It was a good thing that she had security cameras, otherwise she wouldn't have been able to get the footage. They weren't very stealthy, though, which was why she believed they were guarding her. Jackie often wondered why North let them guard her, and why they were guarding her.

Pitch raised his eyebrow. "Tracking or guarding you?" He tried thinking about other possibilities, but the ones he thought of were highly unlikely.

"Don't worry. I'm armed," Jackie replied, casually patting her "utility" belt. The teen wasn't an idiot, prior to belief. Whose belief? Rosa Greene, her mother, her math teacher, and many others. 

"Your knife against them?" the man said disbelievingly. The yetis were big and strong. Pitch highly believed in Jackie's skills, but even they wouldn't be enough against a single yeti, let alone however many were on tracking/guard duty.

"The knife and a couple canisters of Mace," the teen replied, pulling out a canister of Mace. She had more, but decided displaying one would be okay for now.

"That's all?" Pitch replied, a little worried. He was quite sure it wouldn't be enough.

"Everything else I thought of was either too big or illegal," Jackie responded. Unfortunately. She would have liked to carry around a pair of brass knuckles, but those were illegal. Guns, obviously, were also illegal for minors like her. She wasn't allowed to own a taser or a stun gun until she was 18. So, she settled with the basics.

Pitch rolled his eyes. In his time, when he was still alive, boys owned weapons, and real weapons, like spears, bows and arrows, daggers, swords, and shields by the time they were Jackie's age, if not before. Although, Pitch's time was during Ancient Greece, where danger was practically everywhere. And the women basically just cleaned, cooked, looked pretty, and had children where he grew up. So maybe this decade, heck, this century was better than the one he grew up in.

"Are there any spirits from, like, African mythology or fairytales or something?" Jackie asked suddenly.

Pitch, used to Jackie asking random questions, responded, "It's highly likely. But they most likely live in their native country."

"By choice?" Jackie pressed.

"I'd assume," Pitch replied. He knew that sometimes spirits could be exiled to live in a certain area for a certain amount of years, and that their duties would be seen to by Manny himself, but had never seen it happen. He explained this to Jackie, who just nodded.

"Has that ever happened to you?" Jackie asked Pitch. It seemed like the thing Manny might do to him.

"No," Pitch replied simply. Jackie raised an eyebrow, not entirely believing him. "It hasn't," the man said.

"Sure," Jackie said disbelievingly. Then the look she got when she was about to ask a question. Her lights tightened, and she frowned slightly. Then she asked, "Can a spirit..." she paused. "Die?"

Pitch was ready for this question. He was surprised Jackie hadn't asked sooner. "There are three ways this can happen. Manny strips their power away, their body is severely damaged, or if the spirit finds someone to take their place."

Jackie looked like she was thinking. "Can you explain the last one a little more?" she asked.

"Say I decided I was done being the Boogeyman. I could simply pass my power onto you with a small oath, and then you would become the Boogey... Woman. And then I would die," the man explained.

Jackie's face was shocked at first, but understanding later. She seemed to know that, after living for such a long time, how someone would see death as peaceful. Like a gentle wave pushing them to a calmer part of the ocean. Somewhere they could stay forever without fear or worry.

It was silent for a little while after that. Jackie was processing this new information when Pitch thought of something. "Can I ask you a question?"

Jackie looked up at the man. "Sure," she replied.

Pitch thought of a way to ask his question. Struggling, he asked, "Do you see me as a... A bad person?" The man was... afraid that Jackie thought he was still the man he was before. In his eyes, he'd changed. He hoped it showed.

So, the man was relieved when Jackie immediately shook her head. "You're a good man. Yeah, you were a little bitch before. But you're a good man now, and that's what counts."

Pitch had to stop himself from crying and smiling at the same time. He was relieved. He would have hated for the only person on earth he liked to think he was still the nightmare he was before. Of course, the Boogeyman still spread fear and nightmares to children and... Well, everyone. But it wasn't for gain anymore. He even helped people wake up when they were having a particular bad nightmare.

The two eventually talked about how life was in Ancient Greece and how it was now. Pitch was surprised at how much humanity had evolved, and amazed at how stupid some people were. Especially these... Anti-vaxxers and... Karens? Yes, Karens. Jackie tried to teach Pitch some modern slang, but eventually threw her hands in the air and changed the subject.

Jackie left to go home at seven at night. Pitch sat there and absorbed information for about ten minutes, then went out to go look at the moon. It was only a crescent that night, but the moon glowed a bright white in the dark night sky. The man noticed that the stars didn't shine as brightly. Jackie explained this to him with disdain in her voice, something about light pollution. Pitch was saddened to hear this. He remembered his favorite thing to do as a boy was go out and look at all of the stars at night.

His favorite thing to look when he was a boy at was the moon, though. It glowed so brightly amongst all of the other stars, and it was so... big and bright. It seemed to chase the darkness away. Now whenever the man looked at the moon, he was only reminded of the curse bestowed on him. Tonight, however, the moon seemed a little less cold. Pitch stood there for a few seconds then said, "Thank you for... for her." He disappeared into the shadows without another word. But he could have sworn the moon glowed a little more brightly than usual, and then went back to normal.


	12. Chapter 12

The Guardians eventually convinced Jack to wait a week or so to bring Jackie to the Pole, with promises that she would be guarded by yetis secretly. Jack was on the top of the Eiffel Tower on a warm summer afternoon when something large flew next to him. The winter spirt blushed upon noticing who it was.

"Hello again, Jack!" Cupid said to Jack cheerfully, his large light pink wings beating in the warm and humid summer air.

"Hi," Jack managed to say. He mentally cursed himself for going so red. He at least wished he could get his heart to stop beating so fast...

"How did things go with... What was her name? Jackie?" Cupid asked, still flying.

Jack sighed. "It's a long story."

Cupid just nodded. He seemed to be okay with that answer. "I assume your mission isn't finished?"

The winter spirit shook his head. He wished he was done... North had told him not to tell any other spirits about Manny's warning. Jack agreed with that back then, but looking at Cupid, all he wanted to do was tell him everything...

"Are you enjoying Paris?" the love spirit asked, gesturing around him. Jack halfway shrugged. He wasn't very good at French, hated the humidity, and didn't care much for French desserts. Well, the macaroons, sure, but everything else he didn't like much. "That's a shame," Cupid simply said.

"Do you like America?" Jack asked.

"I do, but I don't prefer it over France. This is my hometown, you see," Cupid said, smiling fondly at the city.

"Yeah, same with me and Burgess," Jack replied, not noting that he didn't remember much from when he was human.

"Well, best of luck to you! I must tend to my duties now," Cupid said cheerfully. He then flew away with those big white wings of his. Jack waved and sighed. The winter spirit held his staff a little more tightly and began flying to Burgess.

As he flew, a pit in his stomach grew larger and larger with each minute that passed. Soon, much sooner than he would like, he was in Burgess, facing the teen's home. It was eight at night. He and the Guardians had agreed to bring her at that time on that day. Jack was nervous.

But before he could knock, the door opened. The face of an annoyed Jackie appeared. "What the hell do you want now?" she snapped at him. 

Jack froze there in fear and shock. But he was grateful for the fact that she hadn't taken out her pocket knife yet. "Are you going to take me to the Pole again?" Jackie demanded.

"Well, yes, but-" Jack started before Jackie cut him off.

"Yay, let's go," she said without much enthusiasm. The teen checked her pockets for her phone, looked in her utility belt for items Jack couldn't see, and then turned to him and nodded.

"That easily?" Jack asked, frowning slightly. It usually wasn't this easy... Then the wind interrupted Jack's thoughts. It was almost saying, "Hurry up! Let's go!" But this time, it also lifted Jackie, who let out a small gasp. She seemed to be enjoying it as she got used to it.

"Well, come on," Jackie said impatiently, somehow upright with her arms crossed in midair. Jack sighed and, assuming the wind would carry Jackie, began flying to the North Pole. Behind him, he could hear Jackie's whoops of delight.

She felt free. That was the only way to describe it. Like she could go anywhere and do anything. Jackie decided she liked this form of transportation. She heard Jack laughing somewhere in front of her.

They landed in the North Pole shortly afterwards. Jackie actually thanked the wind, to Jack's surprise. He'd never tried talking to the wind. A small breeze brushed passed Jackie, but it seemed sharper to Jack, like Why haven't you ever done that? The two walked inside, Jack with much fear, and Jackie with confidence.

"Am I about to find out why the Man in the Moon wants me so badly?" Jackie asked as they began walking towards the Guardians. Jack tensed. He didn't want to tell the teen, but he knew that they would have to. Otherwise, she would run until they agreed to tell her, or find out the answers herself, or... Something.

"We haven't decided whether to tell you or not," Jack replied. He wished he hadn't.

"So you do know?" Jackie pressed on. The winter spirit just nodded. Thankfully, the teen got the hint and also stayed silent. They reached the Globe, where the Guardians were waiting.

"Jackie. Welcome to the Pole. Again," North added. Jackie smiled a little bit, then fully took in her surroundings. She didn't looked too amazed, unlike Jack's reaction to seeing the Pole the first time.

"So, why does the Man in the Moon want me here?" Jackie asked, getting down to business. She kept a cool and calm demeanor, hoping it would give her a slight advantage.

The Guardians looked at each other nervously. They hadn't decided what to tell her. "We don't entirely know yet," Tooth responded. She was lying, Jack knew, but she lied well.

Not well enough for Jackie. She could see the fairy sweating even though it was pretty cool in the room (to Jackie's liking. She preferred cooler temperatures over warmer temps) and saw anxiousness in her eyes. And... "Jack said you guys know why he wants me here," Jackie pointed out, her voice now crisp and sharp.

The Guardians shared a similar glare and pointed it at Jack. He sighed and muttered something about needed to have a plan next time under his breath. Jackie rolled her eyes. Even she could be more organized than they could, and she was 13. They were, what, 1,000,000 years old?

"Well, anyways, Manny's orders were to keep you here," North said. Jack raised an eyebrow at him. North avoided Jack's gaze and focused it on Jackie. She pressed her lips together.

"Tell me why and I'll stay," Jackie replied.

"No," North said. Jack facepalmed, just like Bunny. Apparently, they both agreed that they needed to tell Jackie the truth. Tooth and Sandy seemed to go with North's idea of not telling her, though.

Jackie raised her eyebrow. "Tell me or I'm leaving. I have two pocket knives, five canisters of Mace, and nothing to lose. Fight me." And that is when Jack knew they were absolutely screwed up.


	13. Chapter 13

Ao sat in her lively home that was mainly white with light yellow furniture. It would be enough for any emo to start puking, but for the light spirit, it was just fine. She herself was sitting on a light yellow chair and thinking about that pesky Pitch Black. And, a very familiar question for Ao: How do I get Manny to make me a Guardian? Also, how do I kill Pitch Black?

Ao had tried so many things already. She provided light when children were in the dark, light for their petty flowers, plants, and trees, but nothing. The light spirit had tried defeating Pitch, but that only ended in her going in hiding for five decades. Not because she had been harmed, but because Pitch had been victorious in winning the fight, and Ao's pride had been damaged. The others laughed at her. Stupid Ao, she can't even defeat Pitch Black!

The blond gripped the arms of her chair with her tanned fingers, her fingernails perfectly painted bright yellow. The woman's bright yellow eyes were full of hate as an ugly smirk crossed over her face. Loosely hanging on her well fed frame was a white chiton with a thin yellow belt rope around her waist and yellow/white gladiator sandals. A bow and quiver full of arrows that glowed yellow were on her back.

The thought hit Ao like an arrow. She sat straight up with a smirk on her face. What if she threatened to kill one of his Nightmares? One of her light arrows would definitely do the trick. And then when Pitch came out, Ao would shoot him instead. It wasn't much, but it was one of the best ideas she had. No more nightmares... The children would love her. Manny would make her a Guardian.

The woman cackled. It was the perfect plan for the perfect spirit. Why hadn't she thought of it before? She really was quite the genius. But she would find that she was wrong. So very, very wrong.


	14. Chapter 14

Jackie stood in front of the Guardians. They were silent. "North, maybe we should-" Jack began saying, a little pleading in his voice, but North waved him off.

"She'll be scared to death if we tell her," North muttered back. Jackie watched the two carefully.

"She'll also be dead if we don't!" Bunny hissed back. Jackie heard that one.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold the fuck up," she said, holding her hands up. Jack noticed she already was holding a canister of Mace, and prayed she wouldn't have to use it. "Why am I dying?"

"Uhm- What makes you think we're talking about you?" Jack panicked.

"Uhm, I'm the only female except for Tooth, and I don't think you're talking about her," Jackie replied. The news of her death didn't seem to faze her much. "So tell me now or I will fight everyone in this room and leave."

Jack gave North a pointed look. The man shook his head slightly, which infuriated Jack. They needed to tell her! She would and probably could take everyone in the Pole down just to escape. He knew that much about her.

"No," North replied stubbornly.

Jackie sighed and took out her pocket knife. "If you insist," was the only thing she said before the fight started.

Half an hour later, everyone was knocked out. Most of their eyes, heck, faces had gone puffy and red from the Mace. Jackie wasn't kidding- she had a lot of that stuff. She had cleverly tricked Sandy into hitting everyone in the room with Dreamsand after realizing she needed to do something besides fighting. Then, she hit Sandy in the back of the head with her phone. Thankfully, because her phone had a very expensive case on it, the phone had no damage to it.

The teen cruised out of the room, whistling "Jingle Bells" softly. She walked into the freezing outside temperatures and, with a shivering jaw, called for Nyx. Jackie wrapped her arms around herself for some warmth. The results weren't very good.

Jackie got worried as Nyx didn't show up. "Nyx?" she worriedly yelled. Then, now desperate, she said, "Pitch?" No response. Now Jackie was panicking. She rushed inside to get out of the cold.

The teen sat herself down on the floor and almost started crying as she tried to think. She'd been on quite the emotional roller coaster. She learned she was going to die and Nyx and Pitch weren't answering her call. Then the teen scolding herself for crying. "Pull yourself together, Jackie! Now is not the time to start crying like a five year old!" she said to herself aloud.

Something near North caught her eye. It was... A snow globe. Then her eyes lit up. It was a snow globe! Not just a snow globe, but a portal. It must have fallen out of North's pocket. Immediately, the teen got up and snatched it off the floor. She mentally praised herself and said, "Burgess! Home!" The globe filled itself with a sort of pixelated image of her house.

The teen gave the Guardians one last glance. Then she threw the snow globe, which opened to a portal. Without another thought, she walked into it. Behind her, Sandy woke up. He saw the portal close and internally groaned. Now Jackie was the one who was screwed.

Meanwhile

Pitch got nervous when he noticed that Nyx was nowhere to be found. He even went into the forest to look for the Nightmare. More than that, she had abandoned her post under Jackie's bed. She'd never done that before. He was even more nervous when Jackie was also gone. Perhaps the two had left together, Pitch told himself. Then the Boogeyman felt Nyx's presence nearby. He travelled out of his cave to tell Jackie off when he met...

"Ao," he said cooly. The light spirit had Nyx in a golden cage that glowed a bright yellow. The Nightmare was highly distressed, neighing so much he was sure everyone in the world could hear her.

"Hello, Pitch," Ao responded, a wicked smile on her face. Her arrow was already nocked and pointed at his chest. The bow itself was white, the color of her arrows unseen because they were glowing so brightly. It hurt Pitch's eyes to look at them, so he focused his gaze on Ao.

"I assume you know what this is?" she purred. It seemed she had left her quiver of arrows at home, confident she would only need one. Pitch knew exactly what it was. A light arrow. Used to take down Nightmares in the olden days. And, because of his weak state, it could likely kill him.

"You plan on killing me?" Pitch simply asked, even though his heart was pounding in his chest. He was scared, but he wasn't going to show it. He wouldn't give her that satisfaction. This obviously irritated Ao.

"Why aren't you scared?!" she screeched at him.

Pitch made a tsk noise. "You always had a terrible temper."

Ao scoffed. "Yes, I plan on killing you. What are you going to do about it?"

The Nightmare King thought for a little bit. He didn't see a way out. If he hid, Ao would find him. He couldn't form any plans in his head that had the outcome he wanted. So he replied, "Nothing."

Ao cackled. "As I expected. Aww... Are you scared?" she asked in a mocking tone.

Was he scared? Kind of. Not really. He knew this time would come someday. But it seemed to sudden now that it had come. He thought of Jackie and tears almost started forming his eyes. He would be leaving her, the best thing that had ever happened to him. But as he thought of what she would say to Ao made him laugh. Something along the lines of, "You need to get over your obsession with white and yellow. And what the fuck is up with all of the glow-y shit?"

"No, I'm not scared," Pitch decided to say. He would accept what was going to happen. There were some things you didn't have control over, and one of them was your fate. Besides, he became a better person. Became friends with a human child. He'd lived an okay life.

"Hm. Well, after I kill you, the children will be happy. And the Man in the Moon will finally turn me into a Guardian!" Ao said so cheerfully it was sickening. Then again, talking about murder cheerfully was naturally sickening to most people.

Instead of saying that, Pitch laughed cruelly. "And you think that will work? He'll know you're only doing this for yourself."

"SHUT UP!" Ao screeched. Then, more calmly, she said, "Any last words?"

Pitch stood there blankly. Was there anything he wanted to say to Ao before his inevitable death? Maybe a sarcastic comment. Something heartfelt so Ao wouldn't kill him? No, that wouldn't work. He shook his head and closed his eyes. Shortly afterward, he heard an arrow swiftly flying through the air. The man took his final breath. He was ready.


	15. Chapter 15

For whatever reason, the snow globe took Jackie to the "lake" instead of her home. She understood quickly. Jackie hid behind a tree and watched the scene unfold with horror. When Pitch closed his eyes, ready for impact, the teen knew what she had to do. She jumped in front of Pitch yelling, "NOT TODAY!" What? She wanted to be original. No, she actually screamed, "NO!"

It hurt less than she thought it would, Jackie thought. Ao had managed to hit her in the heart, more or less. Jackie stood there and then crumpled to the floor. She was only slightly aware of what was happening around her. The world was going dark... Jackie felt something wet fall on her face. Tears?

Jackie blinked. Her eyes let her see Pitch's face above hers. "Don't cry," was all she could manage to say. That was what her mother said to her when her father's funeral came around. "It's gonna be okay." That was what her father said to her after Rosa poured milk all over Jackie's head. That was in kindergarten, Jackie faintly remembered.

"No, no, no, no, no, you're going to be okay," Pitch said, his voice so quiet Jackie could barely hear it. He sounded like he was convincing himself more than her. Or maybe that was her hearing going. She heard a faint neigh in the background. "Why... why would you..?"

Jackie gathered her strength to smile. "Someone had to."

"Why did it have to be you?" the man said, more tears filling his eyes.

"Shh... it's gonna be fine..." Jackie replied, her voice growing faint. She could barely see Pitch now. Everything was growing so dark. Jackie wished she could fight against the darkness that was death, but she didn't know how. But she tried, with all of the strength she had left. "What did you do... before you died?" she asked, trying to smile.

Pitch tried to smile. Of course, another question. "I was... a general... ancient Greece..."

"Athens, right?" Jackie replied, letting out a small croaking laugh. But she faltered, feeling her energy slipping. It was time to go, she thought finally. The teen decided to give in.

The teen smiled at Pitch one last time. She focused her gaze on Nyx was best as she could, and smiled in her direction, too. Finally, the teen put her head straight. "Goodbye, PB." Her face went blank and her eyes went glassy as she let the pain take over.

Pitch let his head hang as the tears began falling. It was like his heart had been ripped out of his chest- like nothing would ever be okay again. He lost his only ray of light in the world of darkness he lived in. The one thing he loved, the one thing he had ever cared about... Was gone. He let out a scream of distress and anguish that was so loud it echoed off of the trees surrounding them. It seemed to be able to rip people's hearts out from their chests, be able to get people sobbing in mere seconds. Nyx neighed in distress behind him, but he barely heard it.

Jackie. Jackie. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, you can't be- 

You can't- 

Pitch sobbed and screamed again, though this time more quietly. It scratched his throat, but it was a soothing pain. It distracted him from the pain coming from inside. He clutched onto her body, not caring about the blood on his hands, wishing and praying she could come back.

Jackie. Jackie... You can't leave me... Please don't leave me...

Don't let me find out what it's like to live without you in my life...

Another banshee-like wail escaped his lips. This time, birds flew out of the forest like they couldn't handle his pain anymore. They were gone, just like... her...

Please...


	16. Chapter 16

Jack and the other Guardians had reached Pitch's lair by tunnel, only to find they were too late. Quickly, they got out of his lair only to see Pitch crouching by Jackie's dead body. Jack looked around and, in rage, roared and froze Ao in place. The cage containing Nyx opened. The Nightmare got out and joined Pitch. North muttered to Jack that this was Ao, which just made Jack more infuriated. He also felt sick that anybody would do that, just kill a child. 

They pieced together quickly that Ao had tried to kill Pitch and accidentally killed Jackie. North was shocked to see that this made Jack tear up. They turned their attention on Pitch, who sobbed quietly. The Guardians realized that the teen was much closer to Pitch than... Well, anyone else in the entire world, probably.

Jack cursed himself for not realizing that sooner. Pitch had obviously gone looking for her the first time Jackie was taken to the Pole. How Bunny had managed to piss Jackie off in a minute because he was belittling Pitch.

Both Tooth and Bunny tried to get Pitch's attention, which didn't work. Finally, Jack decided to walk closer to Pitch and placed his hand on the Boogeyman's shoulder. Before, Jack wouldn't have dared to touch Pitch, not even when the other was sleeping. Now, Pitch was different. He'd lost the life of someone he'd held dearly in his heart.

"Pitch, c-come on. We'll g-give her a pr-proper funeral a-and... And every-everything," Jack said, his voice not wanting to work as more tears fell down his face. He was the only one who had taken Jackie from Burgess to the North Pole. He was the only one who got to see her reaction to flying with the wind without any equipment or machinery whatsoever.

Pitch turned to Jack. His eyes seemed darker than they were before. And they were cold, empty... and hopeless. Like everything good in his life had been ripped away from him. Which, Jack realized, more or less had been. He fell back with the other Guardians. They waited silently. Jack knew they, too, were grieving, but simply because they felt inclined to. They'd never had a sincere moment with Jackie. Not one.

Jack couldn't believe any spirit would kill a child, or that Manny would let any spirit who would do that exist. Rage burned in his veins. But it was still horrifying to watch the man who he believed could never feel anything besides greed and want in his life was crying his heart out. Just like people life could change, even in the blink of an eye. For better or for worse.


	17. Chapter 17

To any other person, much had changed for Pitch in a mere hour. All Pitch could take in, or at least all he could absorb, was the fact that his friend, his daughter, goddamnit, was dead. He was welcomed to the North with disgustingly pitying stares. That he would have cared about if his mind wasn't already so occupied with other matters. The man would have preferred to disappear in the shadows, but they had Jackie's body, so he decided to stay.

Her body laid inside of a simple wooden coffin made of dark oak lined with red velvet. The yetis were able to whip it up in about ten minutes. After all, about five of them were working, and they already had the materials. The cover had an engraving of a Nightmare on it, which was the only thing Pitch had requested. The body itself was painted, but appropriately colored resin was set as the eyes. When asked, Pitch thought about it and quietly said she should be buried in the forest. Or at least somewhere close to there.

The funeral was held by the entrance to the forest by Pitch's cave, which was rather suiting. Everyone was dressed in black. Bunny wore a black suit and a white collared shirt underneath. Tooth wore a long sleeved dress that reached her ankles. Even Sandy changed the color of his sandy clothing to black. The elves and yetis weren't following such dress code, but were playing mourning music. Those not moving were holding a slightly yellow lighten candle.

It was dark and gloomy as the yetis began digging in the ground. They were in a triangle form, Pitch at front. The yetis not working and elves who weren't in formation dotted the ground. At last, the hole was quite deep, and Jackie's coffin was lowered. Pitch was trying not to cry, and judging by the noises behind him, so was someone else. It was dark. And it was cold. Pitch was... Mad. Sad. And a little scared.

Even the moon seemed to be mourning. It wasn't half as bright as Pitch remembered it being. The stars seemed to twinkle less, so it seemed like the dark night sky was swallowing them. The yetis put the dirt back with shovels. They'd finished in about ten minutes. Finally, they placed a plaque on the floor. It was made of some metal, and engraved were the words: "Jackie Mary Frost. Died 2017. Beloved daughter and friend. 'The last thing that will be conquered is death.'"

With trembling hands, Pitch kneeled in front of the plaque and put his candle down in behind the plaque. He fell back as the others began following his lead. Nyx, inside the forest, let out a neigh of mourning. After all the candles were laid down, Pitch began letting the tears fall.

The others slowly began leaving, giving Pitch one last pitying look. He ignored them and just stood there, looking at the candles as they dimly lit up the darkness. Finally, Pitch was the only one left. One long yet soft gust of wind blew out all of them at the same time. Pitch left without another word, wondering if anything would ever be the same.


	18. Epilogue

A couple days later, the night was cold, and it was dark. If the moon could be sad, that's what it looked like. A moonbeam twinkled on what looked like a freshly dug pile of dirt, and all of a sudden the earth shook gently. The mound of earth cleared to see a dark, wooden coffin with a Nightmare expertly engraved on its lid, resin orbs that looked like molten lava set for the eyes. And invisible hands took off the lid to open to a young girl, maybe thirteen, with hair so short it barely touched her shoulders, pale skin, and closed eyes. She was dressed in a dark blue hoodie, black leggings, and black combat boots, all worn and slightly dirty. For a few seconds, the moonlight shone brightly, almost like the sun would. Her body was raised up until it became surface level with the ground, and the moonbeam shone even brighter. 

But then it twinkled away, reduced to what it was before. And then the corpse's eyes opened.


End file.
